Tuesday, October 05, 2010

Salty, wrinkly, and delicious: Jose Andres papas canarias

Everyone was raving about Bazaar's papas canarias the other night, and they're actually pretty easy to make. Hopefully you have a fairly high salt tolerance -- I recommend offsetting the pleasant saltiness with something like a mild, flaky white fish. Here's the recipe from MarthaStewart.com:
Papas Canarias
Ingredients:
2 pounds baby potatoes
1 cup salt, plus more as needed
Mojo verde, for dipping

Place the potatoes in a deep, medium-size pot. Add enough water to cover, and salt. Potatoes should float in the salted water; if not, add more salt.
Place pot over high heat and bring to a boil. Immediately reduce heat to a simmer and cook until potatoes are easily pierced with the tip of paring knife, 25 to 30 minutes.
Drain water from pot, leaving just enough to cover the bottom. Return pot to low heat and cook, shaking pot until the salt covering the potatoes begins to crystallize, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and cover pot with a clean kitchen towel until potato skins have wrinkled, about 10 minutes. Serve immediately with dipping sauces, as desired.
Mojo verde (don't add salt unless you're serving it with something other than the potatoes)
6 cloves garlic, peeled
2 cups well-packed chopped cilantro leaves
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/2 cup Spanish extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons sherry-wine vinegar
Using a mortar and pestle, mash the garlic and salt to a smooth paste. Add cilantro leaves and cumin seeds; mash until well combined. Slowly drizzle in olive oil while continuing to mash, until all the olive oil is absorbed.
Turning the pestle in a slow, circular motion around the mortar, drizzle in 2 teaspoons water and vinegar. Keep at room temperature until ready to serve.